League of Women Voters is back on the ballot in Montgomery County

By Stephen Tucker Paulsen, Correspondent

Published
3:07 pm CDT, Thursday, October 18, 2018

Erin Baker, president of Montgomery County League of Women Voters, poses next to the organization's display of voting guides at the Montgomery County Central Library, Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018, in Conroe. The organization provides non-partisan information about candidates to voters.

Erin Baker, president of Montgomery County League of Women Voters, poses next to the organization's display of voting guides at the Montgomery County Central Library, Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018, in Conroe. The

Erin Baker, president of Montgomery County League of Women Voters, poses next to the organization's display of voting guides at the Montgomery County Central Library, Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018, in Conroe. The organization provides non-partisan information about candidates to voters.

Erin Baker, president of Montgomery County League of Women Voters, poses next to the organization's display of voting guides at the Montgomery County Central Library, Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018, in Conroe. The

The League of Women Voters is back in Montgomery County after a five-year hiatus.

A nationwide civic group known for its non-partisan voter guides, the League of Women Voters was last active in Montgomery County in 2013. But it closed that year because there weren’t enough people willing to help run the organization, said Erin Baker, president and chairwoman of the reformed group.

Now, it’s officially back. After spending August dealing with logistics — like finding a leadership team and setting up a website — they had their first chapter meeting on September 6.

They’re already busy. Recently, they released guides for districts 3, 15 and 16 of the Texas House of Representatives, which are available at Vote411.org. They’ve also had a total of seven voter-registration drives — at the Conroe YMCA, The Woodlands Farmer’s Market, the Exxon Mobil Spring campus, an area apartment complex and three local libraries.

“We just registered 55 people last Tuesday,” Baker said of the drive at Exxon Mobil, calling it the group’s most successful voter-registration effort yet.

Baker attributes the surge of local interest in the league to a few factors. Most importantly, she said, Montgomery County is getting more populous.

More than 100,000 people have moved to Montgomery County since 2010, according to U.S. Census figures. Projects like the new Exxon Mobil campus, located juts south of The Woodlands in Harris County, have brought in tons of new residents — including Baker’s family, who moved here in 2015.

And then there’s the political climate. The #MeToo era has toppled powerful male predators and drawn more women into politics. And a surge of new Democratic candidates means that everyone has more incentive to watch the races.

“I think that people were getting very excited that for the first time in a very long time that there were actual races with opponents,” Baker said. “Contested races, which haven’t happened for many positions in a very long time.”

“Who else besides the League of Women Voters provides non-partisan information?” she added, describing the League as “the gold standard in our country for that.”

The reopening of the Montgomery County chapter is part of a larger trend, said Grace Chimene, president of the League of Women Voters of Texas, the parent organization for local Texas groups.

League groups have recently reformed in La Vaca, Brazoria and Bell counties, according to Chimene. There’s also talk of reforming in Brazoria and Matagorda counties, as well as in the towns of Laredo, Eagle Pass and Galveston.

A reformed Galveston chapter would be significant because Galveston — once the state’s largest city — had “one of the first leagues in Texas,” Chimene said. She wasn’t sure when that chapter shuttered.

Chimene said she was “thrilled” about the reformed chapters across Texas. “It’s a really exciting time to be in the League,” she said. “Expect more forums, debates and voter guides with information that Montgomery County voters will really appreciate.”

When a group of Montgomery County women started meeting in July to discuss reforming, they quickly realized they would need people to help run the organization, Baker said. So she and four other women stepped up, agreeing to serve as an interim board.

Still, Baker stressed that she is just the temporary president to help get the group off the ground. Asked if she wanted to remain president, she said she was “not sure.”

“If there’s someone who’s really really interested, I’d prefer that she do it, you know what I mean?” Baker said. “If someone is interested and has great ideas, I would happily support and encourage that person.”